Finchem: PGA Tour Is Always Growing, And It Sure Doesn't Need Tiger For Even More Growth!

Dave Shedloski notes the main takeaway from Tim Finchem's Sunday presser at Kapalua, the Commish's insistence that PGA Tour growth is not dependent on Tiger and that Tiger's success doesn't matter in the all-vital area of...growth!

"The PGA Tour grew when Jack Nicklaus was winning. It grew when he stopped winning and it's grown with Tiger winning. It doesn't matter to us," Finchem said Sunday at the Plantation Course at Kapalua Resort. "We can grow with one player dominant or we can work with more wide-open competition. The fans like it and are interested in it both ways."

Right, and the ratings sure reflect that!

Moving right along, this was interesting from the presser as well: on top of a V-word explosion, there was his suggestion that schedules were changed last year by top players to help struggling events.

When we talk to players about moving their schedule around, it's a private conversation. We respect their decision regardless. I think that's the philosophy that we'll continue.

Having said that, last year we went out and asked players to move their schedule around and over 90 percent of players did in some fashion and it helped our fields, it helped our sponsors.

Is that 90% based on some sort of sliding scale? Say, with Tiger playing Frys.com accounting for 80% of the 90%?

Q. Why not legislate that players as a part of membership have to play a different event each year so that you can get that remaining ten percent on board?

COMMISSIONER FINCHEM: Well, we looked at that. We looked at that last year. We said we don't like to legislate and tell players what to do unless it has an overriding importance.

In this particular case, we asked for a volunteer; by now virtually, I'd say 90 percent, I couldn't tell you any players that haven't been helpful to be honest,

...double negative alert...

including a couple of just referenced in your question about moving their schedules around the first quarter this year.

So this is an ongoing process. We are doing very well with sponsors. Our sponsors are very pleased with the value equation on the PGA TOUR; if they didn't, they would be spending their money elsewhere. There are multiple value streams that go to sponsors. Our price point is such that given that value, you are 100 percent sponsored.

Three V's in three sentences. That's a nice clip for the season-opening presser.

We don't have a crisis in this area and we have a very, very positive situation. When somebody writes an article like at Memorial that five of the Top 25 players are not here or something, and somebody is sensitive to that, we are not going to start changing policies because of that.

Of course, in the same press conference he was talking about options to help the weak field situation at the Tournament of Champions, even though they are not sensitive to such things..

Hey, at least the Commish's form-fitting Hawaiian shirt was admired by a former 2-time Players Champion.